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Screen Printing NYC

Screen printing, also known as silk screen printing, is a method in which ink is pushed through silk mesh using a squeegee and printed onto garments such as t-shirts, hoodies, tote bags and even some items like street signs.

Screen printing starts off with artwork; the art is separated on computer software and printed into transparency films using only black printer ink. Once the films are printed and prepared they are aligned onto screens and burned using ultra violet light. The screen is made up of a frame, usually made of aluminum, with a silk mesh stretch tightly across the frame. A thin layer of photo emulsion is applied to the screens which hardens once exposed to ultra violet light – this process is also known as exposing. The screens are then rinsed out, dried and set up onto the press. The print-master then registers the screens on the press, adds ink to the screens and prints away.

There are a few different types of inks that can be used to screen print garments. These include plastisol ink, water based ink and discharge ink as well as some additives such as puff and high density. The most common, plastisol ink, is made up PVC particles suspended in a liquid of plasticizer which comes in a thick liquid form. Plastisol is printed onto garments and dries, also known as cures, at a temperature of about 350 degrees Fahrenheit at which point it chemically fuses with the fibers on garments.

There are plenty NYC Screen Printing companies around, we would love to be the company to print your next custom apparel order.